OGDEN — In the 17th century, poet John Donne penned the line “No man is an island, entire of itself.” Is it true, or was Paul Simon closer to the truth when he wrote “I am a rock, I am an island” about 350 years later?

“Coil,” a new piece of choreography, explores the question of how connected people are to society and the world.

Weber State University’s Moving Company performs the dance at 4:15 p.m. Thursday, March 29, in the Browning Center’s Austad Auditorium, on campus at 3848 Harrison Blvd. Admission is free.

“Coil,” inspired by Donne’s “Meditation XVII,” is a collaboration between Moving Company and the university’s chamber choir, with 15 dancers and 24 singers performing.

Additional performances are scheduled for local sixth through ninth grade students who are receiving study materials created by WSU graduate student Jennifer Alverson and professor Gary Dohrer.

These performances are part of the National Conference on Undergraduate Research, hosted March 29-31 by Weber State University. WSU students Brett Cragun and ShayLynne Clark studied the collaboration that created “Coil” and will present their data at 8:30 a.m. Thursday in Room 136 of the Browning Center.

Oral presentations and poster sessions at the conference, covering undergraduate research on everything from science and history to electrical engineering and legal studies, are open to the public.

For more information about “Coil,” call 801-626-6431. For information about the National Conference on Undergraduate Research, including presentation schedules, visit www.weber.edu/ncur2012.

The original article can be found here.

By J. Michael Call

Utah musical theater lovers may have already heard Clinton native J. Michael Bailey sing the moving number “Bring Him Home” from the megahit musical “Les Misérables.”

But now audiences from Utah and beyond will have a chance to hear him sing not only that number, but all of Jean Valjean’s songs. Bailey has been selected to play the leading role in the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s upcoming production of the epic musical.

“It’s been something I’ve wanted to do for a long time,” Bailey said. “Now I get to own the role for up to six months, and it’s quite a thrill for me.”

After conducting a national casting search in New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles, artistic directors David Ivers and Brian Vaughn announced Bailey’s selection this week. They were familiar with Bailey’s work as he was in the festival’s 2009-10 acting company. Bailey played Jaggers in the premiere of the musical “Great Expectations” that season at the Cedar City festival.

In considering Bailey for the role of Valjean, the festival flew Bailey to Las Vegas and had him sing through the entire score.

“We needed to know if J. Michael had the vocal strength and range to withstand the demands of this show, and he nailed it,” said Ivers in a press release.

Bailey, who lives in North Salt Lake, grew up on a small farm in Clinton, where he played football and rode horses. He was 18 when he saw his first production of “The Phantom of the Opera” and fell in love with the theater. He studied musical theater at Weber State University and now has over 20 years of experience acting and singing all over the state.

In addition to the festival, the actor with the melodic baritone has appeared in numerous concerts and theatrical productions along the Wasatch Front. Bailey was the Demon Barber of Fleet Street in “Sweeney Todd” at the Egyptian Theatre in Park City. He was recently the Cowardly Lion in Grand Theatre’s production of “The Wizard of Oz,” in which his wife, Mary Anderson Bailey, played the Wicked Witch of the West.

WSU audiences will also recognize him as Capt. Hook in “Peter Pan” and John Wilkes Booths in “Assassins”

Bailey also appeared for three years with a small group of other performers in the Broadway-style Valentine’s concerts at WSU. Bailey’s performance of “Bring Him Home” during those concerts always won enthusiastic applause.

Based on Victor Hugo’s classic novel, “Les Misérables” is an epic and uplifting story about the survival of the human spirit. It focuses on the struggles of ex-convict Jean Valjean as he searches for meaning, love and redemption in 19th-century France.

“I am so grateful that the festival is trusting me to play Jean Valjean,” said Bailey, who is the father of three children. “I feel a strong attachment to Valjean because of the passion and sacrifices he’s willing to make for his child. ‘Les Misérables’ is the ultimate love story with justice, redemption, forgiveness, truth and hope; what more could an actor ask for?”

The musical includes some of theater’s most memorable songs: “I Dreamed a Dream,” “On My Own,” “Bring Him Home” and “Do You Hear the People Sing,” among others.

Written and composed by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg, with lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer, “Les Misérables” is the world’s longest-running musical. It will be playing in the festival’s Randall L. Jones Theatre from June 23 to October 20. The show may be extended, Bailey said, depending on audience support.

For more information or to buy tickets call 1-800-PLAYTIX or check online at www.bard.org.

The original story can be found here.

By J. Michael Call

The show must go on -- even if you don't have a set, costumes or any actors onstage.

That's the story behind the political satire "The Cradle Will Rock," opening March 23 at Weber State University.

The play is directed by Trent Cox, a senior at Weber State University studying theater education. Cox recently appeared as Geoffrey in "The Lion in Winter," Paris in "Romeo and Juliet," and the Stage Manager in "Our Town," all WSU productions.

He has also directed productions at local schools, as well as one-act plays at WSU.

"The Cradle Will Rock" is a co-production of the department of performing arts and the Associated Actors and Technicians at the university.

"It's a show that rarely gets done and is a great piece of theater history," Cox said.

AAT selected "The Cradle Will Rock," Cox said, because of its importance in history. The play -- an allegory of corruption and corporate greed -- was originally directed in 1937 by a young Orson Welles. It was written by Marc Blitzstein and produced by John Houseman as part of the Federal Theatre Project.

"It was causing some controversy and the government was really concerned that it has some leftist ideas and issues," Cox said. "Members of the WPA (Works Progress Administration) came in three days before the opening of the show and closed the theater down. They just pretty much locked the theater with everyone's sets and costumes and props."

The producers were forbidden to use the costumes or sets, and the actors were threatened with arrest if they appeared onstage.

But that didn't stop Welles, Houseman and Blitzstein from cleverly getting around the government's attempted shutdown. They rented another theater and planned for Blitzstein to sing, play and read the entire musical. Without prior planning, cast members joined in the show without violating government dictates.

"They did the entire show from the audience, not on the stage," Cox said.

The show's success led Welles and Houseman to form the Mercury Theatre in New York City. Welles would go on to fame in theater, radio and film, most notably for his movie "Citizen Kane" -- widely considered one of the best films of all time.

Brechtian style

However, "The Cradle Will Rock" was not what the wily director had originally envisioned.

"One of the things that they were concerned about when Orson was originally directing the show was that he was kind of going too over the top with it," Cox said. "The original set was huge and there was a lot of spectacle elements. There were pyrotechnics, and there was actually a part where the stage rocked back and forth. So they went from this huge, elaborate production to kind of like this bare-bones theater."

Cox is taking WSU's production in that direction, using the "Brechtian" style in his directing. Bertolt Brecht was a playwright who was a major influence on Blitzstein as he created the show.

"I'm going for the alienation of the theater, but the audience will be aware that they are watching a show at all times," Cox said. The production includes music, a minimal set, projections, live sound, labeling and 29 different characters portrayed by 16 actors.

Cox noted that 90 percent of the show is either sung or has musical underscoring. The score has a definite '30s vibe and includes a wide variety of styles, he said, including rumba, Hawaiian and big ballads.

"It's tons of different styles of music," Cox said. "But don't come expecting what we know today as a piece of musical theater. It's not even billed as a musical, it's billed as a play with music, but it's definitely kind of an operetta style."

Mister meanie

"The Cradle Will Rock" is set in Steeltown, USA, where Larry Foreman is trying to unionize the town's workers and combat greedy businessman Mr. Mister, who controls the town's factory, press, church and social organizations.

"He cannot stand the thought of a union happening," said WSU student Trevor Dean, who is playing Mr. Mister, "Any way he can try to snuff it out, he's going to do it because that shows there's someone else getting control over what they want in their lives."

Mr. Mister is a character somewhere between Mr. Potter in "It's a Wonderful Life" and Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter series.

"He's all about being the big bad bully on the playground," said Dean, whom audiences will remember as the stuffy Sir Evelyn Oakleigh in WSU's recent production of "Anything Goes."

"He's trying to manipulate everyone in the town to get on to his side," Dean said. "And although everyone in the town is terrified of him, they're more terrified of what he will do to them if they don't join his 'Liberty committee.' He just wants to monopolize everything and get everyone under his grasp."

The greatest challenge playing such a villain for the fun-loving Dean has been to command the stage and get in touch with his inner meanie. He was apprehensive about the role when he first landed the part, but is now enjoying the show and thinks audiences will as well.

Although it was first produced 75 years ago, both Dean and Cox said the show will resonate with modern audiences -- particularly in light of the Occupy Wall Street movement.

"It has a lot to do with the 99 percent trying to rise up to that 1 percent and actually have a say that matters," Dean said.

"One of the main themes in the show is prostitution ... prostitution of one's self, the government, the church, the press ..." Cox added. "Mr. Mister owns Steeltown's press, church and all of the town's factories. He is the 1 percent."

‘WAITING FOR LEFTY’

In conjunction with Weber State University’s production of “The Cradle Will Rock,” the department of performing arts presents a lecture by John Sillito on the New Deal at 1:30 p.m. March 28 in Room 305 of the WSU Shepherd Union Building on campus at 3848 Harrison Blvd., Ogden.

The “Waiting for Lefty” lecture is free and open to the public.

Sillito teaches history at WSU and has done extensive research on radicalism and Utah labor. He co-authored “A History of Utah Radicalism: Startling, Socialistic and Decidely Revolutionary” (USU Press, 2011) with John S. McCormick.

“This lecture will serve as ‘collateral support’ for our audience to have a better understanding of this time period,” said performing arts marketing director Caril Jennings in a press release. “The interesting part, to me, is that we appear to be having the same discussions today as we did almost 75 years ago.”

the original story can be found here.

By Linda East Brady

The Bonneville Chamber Music Festival, a homegrown Weber State University festival celebrating all facets of the more intimate side of classical music, will ring in its sixth year with an exclusive concert recording and two new venues.

The multiple-day festival, which starts Wednesday, March 21, includes student and faculty performers from Weber State University and other Utah universities, as well as guests from Arizona, New Mexico, Brazil and France.

"This is the first time we've done five concerts, and the first time we've gone off campus," said Viktor Uzur, founder of the festival and associate professor of cello at WSU.

The recorded performance will be of the debut performance, featuring French composers and guest pianist Guigla Katsarava, a professor at France's Ecole Normale Supierieure de Paris.

The concert will be captured for posterity with Ray Kimber's experimental, super-high-fidelity ISOMIKE system based in the Austad Auditorium.

"Actually, this is the first time we used Austad, instead of (the smaller) Allred Theater," said Uzur. "It is a little big for chamber music, but we can use panels to literally simulate the sound bouncing off an audience's foreheads -- that is how high-tech it is. I think it will sound amazing."

Requiem at church

Also unique to this year's BCMF is the final performance, at Ogden's Holy Family Catholic Church.

The church was designed in part to feature marvelous acoustics. The concert is a celebration of the memory of Daniele Doctorow, a New York cellist and patron of the arts who passed away at her sister's Salt Lake City home in 2010. Doctorow managed the Jarvis and Constance Doctorow Family Foundation, which benefited both mental health and performing arts studies.

This concert will feature conductor Manfredo Schmiedt, of the Brazilian Orchestra Symphonica de Porto Alegre.

"We will have the orchestra, the choir and the organ, performed by Brett Patterson, the organist for the church," said Uzur. "It will be a celebration of her (Doctorow's) life. We will have her portrait there and celebrate her memory."

A modern touch

Also featured at the festival is a night of modern music on March 23, chamber music classics on March 24, and a free concert featuring University of Arizona faculty guitarist Brad Richter partnering with Viktor Uzur, on March 26.

Said Uzur: "The concert on the 23rd will feature Soviet composer Alfred Schnittke. I had the pleasure of once shaking his hand. He was an amazing composer from the generation that witnessed Perestroika -- but he was also influenced by Shostakovich and the earlier ones. You can see that double line of classical or neo-classical, and really modern music, in his work. So you hear some of the atonal stuff, but also very tonal stuff -- he was so masterful mixing even Baroque with super-modern music styles."

The concert on the 24th will feature Beethoven and Brahms sonatas, with Katsarava and Uzur joining forces.

For the free evening on the 26th, Uzur joins forces with his frequent musical partner Richter, whom he has recorded and performed with for a number of years, including frequent appearances on NPR's "Performance Today." They have also appeared on PBS' "Woodsongs."

The show, titled "From Albeniz to Zeppelin," will feature, as Uzur said, "our mash-ups of (Led) Zeppelin and classical and original works."

On top of his professorial and performance duties, Uzur said, the festival is a lot of work each year, but he enjoys it as long as he sees the community has the interest in continuing it.

"I think people here are getting more interested in this genre," he said, "Now we are looking to make the next step. If the future goes right, in a few years we might see Yo-Yo Ma here. It is very possible."

PREVIEW

• WHAT: Bonneville Chamber Music Festival
• WHEN AND WHERE: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 21, Browning Center’s Austad Auditorium, Weber State University, 3848 Harrison Blvd., Ogden; 7:30 p.m. March 23-24, 26, Browning Center’s Allred Theater, Weber State University; 7:30 p.m. March 30, Holy Family Catholic Church, 1100 E. 5550 South, South Ogden
• TICKETS: March 21, 23, 24 and 30 concerts are $12; $9/students, seniors and those with military ID; 25 percent discount for two or more; tickets available from the WSU box office, 800-WSU-TIKS. March 26 is a first-come, first-served free concert.

The original story can be found here.

Two musicians from Gifted Music School in Salt Lake City were chosen to be on NPR's "From the Top," a nationally broadcast showcase for young musicians.

Aubree Oliverson, 13, played the violin and Anastasia Magomedova, 14, played the piano to the third movement of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto to a live audience on March 8 at Weber State University.

"They play at an extremely high level," said Eugene Watanabe, the director of the Gifted Music School. "What makes them special is they're both capable of playing at a near professional level. It's a result of years of training and hard work."

"From the Top" features some of the most talented youths from around the country, and the two were chosen from hundreds of applicants.

They recorded a one-hour live performance with other young performers. The performance will be broadcast in a month, nationally on NPR and locally on KBYU-FM.

At the program, Magomedova, who emigrated from Tajikistan with her family, received a $10,000 scholarship from the Jack Kent Cooke scholarship fund.

The two have also performed as soloists in the past with the Utah Symphony, and Oliverson will return to do it again in May.

— Tori Ackerman

Original article and photo can be found here

OGDEN — Utah Opera’s upcoming “The Elixir of Love” puts a Western spin on Gaetano Donizetti’s Italian classic opera, and the Ogden Opera Guild will present a sneak peek of the show this week at Weber State University.

The preview presentation begins at 1:30 p.m. Thursday in the Browning Center’s Garrison Choral Room (Room 134) on campus, 3848 Harrison Blvd. Admission is free.

The reimagined rendition tells the tale of a timid ranch hand named Nemorino, who can’t get up the nerve to declare his love for a sassy cowgirl who goes by the name of Adina. When a rival appears on the scene, Nemorino uses a magic elixir to give him the courage to find romance.

The guild will present a shortened version of the show, with several resident Utah Opera artists participating. The artists include baritone John Buffett, soprano Jennie Litster, mezzo-soprano Sishel Claverie, tenor Andrew Penning and pianist Daveth Clark. The presentation is made possible through a RAMP grant.

Utah Opera presents “The Elixir of Love” March 10-18 at Capitol Theatre in Salt Lake City. Tickets are $16 to $85, available through ArtTix or by calling 888-451-ARTS (2787).

The original article can be found here.

By David Burger

Utah Public Radio’s newest program will be taped in front of a live audience in Utah on March 8.

In January UPR began airing the classical music program, "From the Top," twice a week. The show is a NPR-produced radio program.

Weber State University in Ogden is hosting a taping of the show on March 8, to be broadcast nationally in April 2012.

Host Christopher O’Riley will present performances by talented young musicians on the stage at Weber State University’s Browning Center for the Performing Arts.

"From the Top" is an hour-long program showcasing five high-caliber performances along with interviews, sketches and games. Taped before live audiences in concert halls from Boston to Honolulu, the show is now in its 12th broadcast year.

Utah Public Radio recently added "From the Top" to its list of classical music offerings, airing the program Friday afternoons at 2 p.m. with a repeat Sundays at 9 p.m.

A complete list of programs and station frequencies is posted online at www.upr.org, where visitors can also listen to a live stream of "From the Top" and other NPR programs.

In Ogden, listeners can hear UPR on 89.5 FM.

The event is open to the public and tickets are available at www.weberstatetickets.com or by calling 801-626-8500.

Utah Public Radio, a service of Utah State University, is Utah’s oldest public radio service and a member station of National Public Radio.

The original story can be found here.

OGDEN — The annual WSU Piano Festival Honors program begins at 3:30 p.m. Monday in the Browning Center’s Garrison Choral Room (Room 136) at Weber State University, 3848 Harrison Blvd.

The festival, presented by WSU’s department of performing arts, is directed mainly at pre-college students and younger, providing them with motivation to perform. Students will have an opportunity to receive feedback for improving their performances. Participants will be selected to participate in the honors recital at the end of the festival.

Parents, teachers, and interested community members may attend the honors recital free of charge. For information, call 801-626-6800.

Browning Center Choral Room
BC 136, WSU
Ogden

When: 3:30 p.m. March 5.

Admission: Free.

Info: 801-626-6800.

Mon, Mar 5 - 3:30 pm 

The original article can be found here.